Raptor Center Open House Features Up-Close Views of Birds of Prey

October 18, 2007

The public is welcomed to a free open house at the California Raptor Center (CRC) Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007. We will be open from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and there will be special presentations at 10:00 a.m. and noon.

We also invite people to join our Hawk Walk, a short birdwatching excursion that starts at the CRC gate at 8:00 a.m. and finishes at 9:00 a.m.

At the California Raptor Center, School of Veterinary Medicine staff and a corps of volunteers care for injured raptors (eagles, hawks, vultures and owls), rehabilitating and releasing them back to the wild whenever possible. Birds that cannot be released are trained to take part in our education programs. The special presentations will demonstrate fascinating features of raptor biology and ecology, and visitors will be able to see many different raptors close up, "on the fist," and in our display cages. Our museum will also be open.

The California Raptor Center is on the south edge of the UC Davis campus. To reach the center, take the UC Davis/Old Davis Road exit from Interstate 80 and turn south on Old Davis Road. You will pass several campus buildings and the train tracks. Turn left at the top of the small hill. Follow the paved levee road one block and turn diagonally left, going down to the CRC parking lot. Parking is free. For a map visit our Web Site at: http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/ars/raptor.htm

The California Raptor Center is an educational and research facility of the School of Veterinary Medicine dedicated to the rehabilitation of injured and orphaned birds of prey. The center receives about 200 sick, injured, and orphaned birds of prey each year. We provide hands-on training in the care and management of birds of prey to students at UC Davis and the School of Veterinary Medicine.

The center is open to the public Monday through Saturday; groups of six or more are asked to make a reservation. We provide educational programs to the general public and university community, including visits to regional schools, on-site group tours by reservation, and open house events.